--- title: Knock Knock. Who's There? Idlers! description: Belt mistracking creates problems such as spillage and conveyor component damage. Read more on how to solve belt wander and achieve belt alignment. image: https://blog.martin-eng.com/hubfs/Tie%20off%20idler.jpg --- [![martin-sig-logo](https://blog.martin-eng.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Martin_Engineering_December2018/Image/martin-sig-logo.png?width=310&name=martin-sig-logo.png "martin-sig-logo")](https://blog.martin-eng.com/) ## visit us at [www.martin-eng.com](http://www.martin-eng.com) / [800-544-2947](tel:+8005442947) ## [< ![](https://blog.martin-eng.com/hs-fs/hubfs/DanMarshall_blog.jpg?width=35&name=DanMarshall_blog.jpg) By Dan Marshall on Feb 5, 2021 3:11:02 PM I have been around conveyors for 20 years and have seen thousands of belts. I have just about seen it all when it comes to material handling. Do you know what I have not seen? I've never seen a belt run true “right out of the box.” All conveyors, no matter how well designed and built, have some wander. Sometimes it is a little mistracking while other times it is so far off-track, you wonder if the belt and the idlers even belong /work together. What Went Wrong? There are many consequences of a mistracking belt. The first and foremost is **spillage**.![belt mistrackng can lead to conveyor spillage](https://blog.martin-eng.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Spillage.jpg?width=223&name=Spillage.jpg) A belt cannot catch material if the belt is not present in its entirety. Spillage can lead to all kinds of safety issues, component damage, and a generally untidy facility. A mistracked belt can also cause damage to the equipment and/or the belt itself. ![Conveyor belt warp can have many causes such as improper belt manufacturing or off-center loading](https://blog.martin-eng.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Belt%20Warp.jpg?width=206&name=Belt%20Warp.jpg)No two belts are identical. A belt can be manufactured incorrectly, it can be loaded off center, the stringer may be out of line, or a strong wind may push the belt out of line once or twice a day. There are many reasons that a belt could be out of line, and specific operators know how to fix their own belts. If you don’t know what is causing your belt to mistrack, please **give us a call.** A seasoned professional can **quickly diagnose the problem and offer a solution.** ### How To (Somewhat) Fix It As long as conveyors have been around, people have tried many methods to keep them in line. ![An obstacle can be placed in the belt path to try to steer the belt ](https://blog.martin-eng.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Belt%20Foriegn%20Object.jpg?width=300&name=Belt%20Foriegn%20Object.jpg)Many operators have elected to place an **obstacle in the belt path to not allow the belt to travel too far out of line.** This method of “steering” has been met with varying degrees of success. Sometimes it works but most of the time, **the belt eats through the obstacle** (as shown to the right). Conveyor owners quickly realize that **pivoting an idler is the quickest and most effective way to steer a belt.** ![Knocking conveyor idlers is a method where an idler is manually moved to guide the belt back in line](https://blog.martin-eng.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Knocking%20Idlers.jpg?width=220&name=Knocking%20Idlers.jpg) The most common “solution” is called “**knocking an idler.”** This is the process by which an idler is manually moved slightly to “steer” the belt back into line. Many manufacturers have also created mechanisms to help align a belt. Each solution works in specific applications. While these mechanisms do function in specific circumstances, they do not react to dynamic belt wander, meaning they do not handle intermittent belt wander. [![Click To Read More On Belt Alignment](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/5156573/db19eaa5-68b3-476a-bdfe-b120e8813d6f.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/5156573/db19eaa5-68b3-476a-bdfe-b120e8813d6f) To combat dynamic belt wander, the tracking idler was created. This **idler senses the belt movement and turns the idler to steer it back into position.** If the belt runs true, the idler will not pivot as much. ![A conveyor idler helps guide the belt's travel](https://blog.martin-eng.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Idler.png?width=432&name=Idler.png) There is also an issue of slow reaction time. For the sake of space, tracking idlers have short sensing arms. Unfortunately, this necessitates a very large belt displacement to create a small idler pivot. While a tracking idler tends to work, on a particularly stubborn belt, no amount of idler pivoting will steer a belt. Short sensing arms can actually pinch a belt if the idler pivots too far. In an effort to resolve this, some owners have elected to “tie off” a tracking idler (shown below).  ![Tying off a conveyor idler is sometimes used to try to put the conveyor belt in line](https://blog.martin-eng.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Tie%20off%20idler.jpg?width=396&name=Tie%20off%20idler.jpg) This is a lower-labor version of knocking. While this protects the belt, it doesn’t address the extreme mistracking. Check out this [![solution](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/5156573/ce50ad11-c286-4e85-93a9-f9da2a9f3e32.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/5156573/ce50ad11-c286-4e85-93a9-f9da2a9f3e32) to prevent the need for tying off.  ### Wouldn't It Be Nice To Have The Best Of All 3 Worlds? There happens to be one belt tracker that utilizes the best technology to keep a belt running straight. A “multi-pivot-point” tracker, shown [![here](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/5156573/3a9014d0-a0b9-486c-9c59-4315c6a994c9.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/5156573/3a9014d0-a0b9-486c-9c59-4315c6a994c9),  utilizes pivoting idlers, sensors, and geometry. The sensors cannot pinch the belt and the geometry amplifies the misalignment to create a greater pivot.  I hope you have learned more about keeping your belts aligned!  Share this with a friend: [![Share on Facebook](https://cdn2.hubspot.net/hubfs/522195/SphereOne/SVGLogoNew/icon-fb.svg)](http://www.facebook.com/share.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fblog.martin-eng.com%2Fknock-knock.-whos-there-idlers%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Dfacebook) [![Share on LinkedIn](https://cdn2.hubspot.net/hubfs/522195/SphereOne/SVGLogoNew/icon-linkedin.svg)](http://www.linkedin.com/shareArticle?mini=true&url=https%3A%2F%2Fblog.martin-eng.com%2Fknock-knock.-whos-there-idlers%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Dlinkedin) [![Share on Twitter](https://cdn2.hubspot.net/hubfs/522195/SphereOne/SVGLogoNew/icon-twitter.svg)](https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?original_referer=https%3A%2F%2Fblog.martin-eng.com%2Fknock-knock.-whos-there-idlers%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Dtwitter&url=https%3A%2F%2Fblog.martin-eng.com%2Fknock-knock.-whos-there-idlers%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Dtwitter&source=tweetbutton&text=Knock%20Knock.%20Who%27s%20There%3F%20Idlers%21) [![Share on Pinterest](https://cdn2.hubspot.net/hubfs/522195/SphereOne/SVGLogoNew/icon-pinterest.svg)](http://pinterest.com/pin/create/button/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fblog.martin-eng.com%2Fknock-knock.-whos-there-idlers%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Dpinterest&media=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn2.hubspot.net%2Fhubfs%2F522195%2FSphereOne%2FSVGLogoNew%2Ficon-pinterest.svg) [![Share on Email](https://cdn2.hubspot.net/hubfs/522195/SphereOne/SVGLogoNew/icon-mail.svg)](mailto:?subject=Check%20out%20https%3A%2F%2Fblog.martin-eng.com%2Fknock-knock.-whos-there-idlers%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Demail%20&body=Check%20out%20https%3A%2F%2Fblog.martin-eng.com%2Fknock-knock.-whos-there-idlers%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Demail) ##### comments 0 ## BLOG CATEGORIES --- - [Air Cannons (38)](https://blog.martin-eng.com/tag/air-cannons) - [Conveyor Products (141)](https://blog.martin-eng.com/tag/conveyor-products) - [Dust Control (32)](https://blog.martin-eng.com/tag/dust-control) - [Railcar Unloading (17)](https://blog.martin-eng.com/tag/railcar-unloading) - [Safety (78)](https://blog.martin-eng.com/tag/safety) **[All](https://blog.martin-eng.com/)**